Category Archives: Agri-Health

First non-travel-associated MERS in Africa–Researchers report past MERS-CoV infections in two Kenyans
Agri-Health / Article / Camels / Diagnostics / Disease Control / East Africa / Emerging Diseases / Epidemiology / Human Health / ILRI / ILVAC / Kenya / LIVESTOCKFISH / MERS / Pastoralism / Zoonotic Diseases

First non-travel-associated MERS in Africa–Researchers report past MERS-CoV infections in two Kenyans

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Researchers at the Nairobi, Kenya-based International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) and at the University of Bonn Medical Center in Germany have found evidence of MERS-CoV antibodies in archived blood samples from two of 1,122 Kenyan livestock handlers, collected between 2013 and 2014. Continue reading →

Unpacking transdisciplinary research (the REALLY hard science)
A4NH / Africa / Agri-Health / Animal Diseases / Disease Control / Emerging Diseases / Environment / Epidemiology / Event report / FSZ / Human Health / ILRI / Opinion piece / Pests / Pro-Poor Livestock / Research / RVF / Trypanosomiasis / Zoonotic Diseases

Unpacking transdisciplinary research (the REALLY hard science)

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The following excerpt is the beginning of a candid and thoughtful article by Ian Scoones, of the Institute of Development Studies (IDS), at Sussex University, about an international symposium, One Health for the Real World: zoonoses, ecosystems and wellbeing, that took place at the Zoological Society of London last week (17–18 Mar 2016). Continue reading →

Brussels roundtable this week on mitigating aflatoxin contamination of food and feed in Africa
Africa / Agri-Health / Animal Feeding / Animal Products / Consumption / Event / Feeds / Food Safety / Human Health

Brussels roundtable this week on mitigating aflatoxin contamination of food and feed in Africa

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PAEPARD [the Platform for Africa-European Partnership in Agricultural Research for Development] is organising with the Directorate General Sante of the European Commission and the East African Farmer Federation (EAFF), and in collaboration with the Partnership for Aflatoxin Control in Africa (PACA) and the African Society of Mycotoxicology (ASM), a roundtable meeting of key aflatoxin experts (not only research experts) on the mitigation of aflatoxin in food and feed in Africa on Monday 25th January 2015 in Brussels (by invitation only). Continue reading →

This March: ‘One Health for the Real World: Zoonoses, Ecosystems and Wellbeing’ symposium
A4NH / Agri-Health / Disease Control / Emerging Diseases / Epidemiology / Event / FSZ / Human Health / ILRI / RVF / Zoonotic Diseases

This March: ‘One Health for the Real World: Zoonoses, Ecosystems and Wellbeing’ symposium

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One Health for the Real World: zoonoses, ecosystems and wellbeing
17–18 Mar 2016

This symposium will bring together leading experts from different fields to discuss the topic ‘Healthy ecosystems, healthy people’. Continue reading →

Food and food systems thinkers advocate a national ‘food policy’ for the US–and maybe the rest of us?
Agri-Health / Agriculture / Consumption / Environment / Human Health / North America / Opinion piece / Policy / USA

Food and food systems thinkers advocate a national ‘food policy’ for the US–and maybe the rest of us?

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Did you miss this call for a US national food policy by Mark Bittman, New York Times columnist and lead food writer; Michael Pollan, leading food, food systems and food science author; Ricardo Salvador, director of food and environment at the Union of Concerned Scientists; and Olivier de Schutter, former UN special rapporteur on the right to food. Continue reading →

African camels could hold a key to controlling the spread of the MERS virus
A4NH / Agri-Health / Article / Camels / CBPP / Diagnostics / Disease Control / East Africa / Emerging Diseases / Epidemiology / FSZ / Human Health / ILRI / Kenya / MERS / Middle East / Zoonotic Diseases

African camels could hold a key to controlling the spread of the MERS virus

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African camels could hold important clues to controlling the potential spread of a respiratory disease transmitted by the animals. For many years African camels have lived with the disease and the risk of it spreading to humans is still low. But more research is necessary to understand the disease better. This is even more important given the confirmation that the chains of transmission of the human Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus (MERS-CoV) infection originated from contact with camels. Continue reading →

New Tanzania project launched to curb disease transmission from consumption of bushmeat
A4NH / Agri-Health / Article / Disease Control / East Africa / Emerging Diseases / Epidemiology / FSZ / ILRI / Southern Africa / Tanzania / Zoonotic Diseases

New Tanzania project launched to curb disease transmission from consumption of bushmeat

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‘Members of communities that live in forests and depend on hunting for survival have been reported to be at risk because bush meat, widely used as their source of food, can be a source of deadly pathogens from wild animals to humans. The Arusha-based, Nelson Mandela University and the US Centre[s] for Disease Control have now entered into a project aimed at curbing the transmission of diseases from wild animals to human beings.’ Continue reading →

Slum farming and superbugs—An ‘Urban Zoo’ science project tracks bacterial routes in complex environments
A4NH / Agri-Health / Article / Disease Control / East Africa / Emerging Diseases / Epidemiology / Food Safety / FSZ / Human Health / ILRI / Kenya / Zoonotic Diseases

Slum farming and superbugs—An ‘Urban Zoo’ science project tracks bacterial routes in complex environments

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The Urban Zoo project is visiting 99 households across Nairobi, rich and poor, with livestock and without. They’re taking samples from people, their animals, and whatever wildlife they can find nearby (and catch): storks, mice, bats, et cetera. They’re sampling the ground around homes, yards and livestock pens with white paper booties. ‘The aim, says University of Liverpool veterinarian Judy Bettridge, is “to try and understand on a small scale how those bacteria are shared” among each household’s people, livestock and environment. “And then when we scale it up, are the bacteria here being shared with the household that’s 50 meters over there? Or 100 meters over there? So, how far can they actually spread?” . . . Continue reading →

By the (BIG) numbers: The MDGs and (BIG) global reductions in child, maternal and HIV deaths
Agri-Health / Article / Film and video / Goats / Women

By the (BIG) numbers: The MDGs and (BIG) global reductions in child, maternal and HIV deaths

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This month, leaders from around the world will get together at the UN to agree on the world’s development agenda for the next 15 years—what they’re calling the Global Goals. It is a great opportunity to take stock of how the world’s poorest are doing, and there is a big push to spread the word about the Global Goals. Continue reading →